Yosemite National Park

In celebration of John Muir's birthday this week I decided that now would be a great time to share my photos from Yosemite!

Nate and I returned to the place of our engagement, then our honeymoon--basically, one of our favorite places ever--Mammoth Lakes, CA to celebrate our one year anniversary last June. We were in Mammoth for a week and while there we decided to spend to take a day trip to Yosemite National Park. This was only my second time visiting the park and there is no way that I could eloquently describe the beauty of it. The contrast between the harsh rocks, the sprawling meadows, and the forests with giant redwood trees is incredible. I know I often say that every place Nathan and I go hiking in is so beautiful, but Yosemite is honestly the most beautiful place I have ever seen.

When we were there I was still pregnant and trying to take it easy by not going on any hikes that were too strenuous, but I still wanted us to see as much of the park as we could so we ended up doing a lot of driving, starting in Tioga Pass and ending in Yosemite valley, with a few stops with mini-hikes along the way. First we hiked around the base of Lembert Dome for a while, then drove over to Mariposa Grove to wander through redwoods. In the picture of the dead redwood with a pathway cut through it, you can see Nate standing by the tree looking so tiny! The trees were that big. After visiting the redwoods, we continued on to Yosemite Valley for views of El Capitan and Half Dome. We ended our visit with a hike out of the valley and up to Vernal Falls. The hike was pretty tiring for me, but the views were worth it. Plus, I saw my first wild bear! Three, actually. A mama and her two cubs munchin' away on a deer. I stood there watching them for a long time, just amazed. (We were around 50 feet away, so we were safe, no worries.) Nature is amazing. As I was watching them I started thinking about how a bear could kill a deer. Deer are so fast and bears don't appear to be very sneaky. Do you have any ideas?

Nate and I are planning to return to Yosemite at the end of May for a backpacking trip with my parents and younger brothers; we're both looking forward to it quite a bit. If you ever get a chance to visit Yosemite you have to take it! I promise that it will be worth whatever sacrifices you might have to make to get there. But for now, please enjoy my pictures. 

Comments

  1. Beautiful pictures and scenery wow! Oh and btw we have to change the date for our next trip. The boys are still in seminary until the end of May. We'll talk. Love you!

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    Replies
    1. OK but let me know soon because I just requested those days off.

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  2. It's so great that you have this special place and a tradition to come back there to celebrate every important occasion!

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